Public Relations

“If I was down to my last dollar, I’d spend it on public relations.” -Bill Gates

Is any publicity good publicity if they spell your name right? No. Whoever said that famous quote obviously did not live in this century. Today, we live in a world where reputation is more precious than ever, can turn on a dime with a little bad press,or succumb to social media disasters with a click or a tweet.

The bigger your business is, the more important public relations is (hence the quote from Bill Gates). That’s because the old adage “The bigger they are, the harder they fall” is so true. If you are a large business, practice, or hospital, you probably already have an employee with a title like “Community Relations” that indicates they are the liaison with the public. Dealing with media, special events, patient or customer surveys, “the suggestion box,” public speaking, internal employee issues, is all a full time job. They build relationships with the media and nurture them as often as possible. They head things off at the pass before something becomes a problem, and spin every positive thing they can in the meantime.

Most small businesses underestimate the need for PR help, or think they cannot afford it. They wing it, and think if they just put out a press release, a story will appear. Or they talk to a reporter without having all the facts. Worse of all, many miss opportunities because they are trying to run a business and PR is not their forte’.

As a professional that has had handled loads of publicity over the years, I can help. I have established media relationships, and know what is newsworthy and what isn’t. Reporters are busier than ever before due to industry staffing cuts, and they appreciate a well-organized press packet that has a good story for them.